The Office of Security Services is charged with maintaining a safe and secure environment on campus. Its chief responsibilities include patrolling campus and staffing security desks; lending assistance and coordinating with first responders in emergencies; investigating reports made by students, faculty and staff; and collecting campus crime statistics for the US Department of Education. The office’s success depends heavily on cooperation from all those who it is asked to protect.

Emergency Management Committee

SVA has a standing committee comprising officials from various offices at the College that is dedicated to ensuring the health and safety of the SVA community and the continuity and/or recovery of critical operations in an emergency. The committee meets regularly to review, allocate and coordinate resources; seek guidance from the New York Police Department, New York City Office of Emergency Management and other local authorities; and put in place written response plans.

Emergency Notification

SVA transmits critical information to the College community using the following methods:

www.sva.edu–Emergency notices, including unscheduled closings and facilities evacuations, are posted to the College’s website. Status updates will be published as new information becomes available.

Main telephone line–Emergency notices, including unscheduled closings and facilities evacuations, are the subject of recorded announcements at 212.592.2000, SVA’s primary published telephone number.

All Concerned e-mail–Bulk e-mail messages directed to current students, faculty and administrative staff at their SVA e-mail addresses are used to provide more detailed information in an emergency.

SVAlert–SVA has contracted with Blackboard Connect to provide an electronic notification system that allows members of the campus community to receive messages directly to a designated cell phone (as text or voice message), e-mail address and/or landline phone. Registration for SVAlert is available to current students, faculty and administrative staff 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through MySVA, the College’s Intranet.

In the event that either the College’s website or the main telephone line are temporarily out of service, the College community will be directed to an alternate website and telephone number via All Concerned e-mail and SVAlert.

In addition to the methods listed above, SVA officials may deploy other methods for notifying the College community, including security officers, fire brigades and other SVA staff.